Tomatoes are one of the most enjoyable things to grow at home, but they require a little bit of TLC to get a reliably good crop from them. Here are our five top tips:
- Plant your tomatoes a little deeper than other plants, so that the roots and an inch or two of the stem are in the soil. This will help them put extra roots down making them stronger and healthier.
- Water tomatoes regularly to keep the soil consistently moist. They are thirsty plants and they don’t do well with irregular wet and dry spells (which can lead to blossom end rot and splitting skin.) We would recommend watering lightly every morning and evening.
- For cordon varieties (grown upright with a cane support or similar), pinch out the side shoots between the stem and main branches. This will encourage the plant to concentrate its energy in producing flowers and fruit rather than extra foliage, and it will all help you in keeping the plant manageable. Likewise, pinch out the growing tip when the plants begin to get too tall.
- Feed with a liquid tomato feed every fortnight.
- Remove excess foliage as flowers and fruits start to form to concentrate energy into the tomato fruits.